Book Review Stopping To Rain: Secrets, Love and Bad Grammar, Mike Kernan @mike_kernan

FOUR FRIENDS. A SECRET THAT WILL HAUNT THEM FOR LIFE

GOODBYE prog rock, flairs and mullets. Hello punk, ripped jeans and Mohicans.
Yes, it’s the late 1970s but for pals Fred, Trish, Greg and Ricky, some things about growing up never change as they plunge into a whirlwind of outrageous antics.
Together with their gang in a Scottish new town, they laugh, cry, booze, battle and obsess about sex as they discover the power of friendship and, for Fred and Trish, true love.
But the bond is ripped apart when a drunken prank goes tragically wrong.
Twenty-five years on, all roads lead home as teenage demons – and passions – are resurrected amidst ugly threats and shocking revelations that turn old beliefs on their heads.
The lives the four have led couldn’t be more different but as showdowns loom, they all face the same question…
Will confronting the dark secrets of the past redeem them or destroy them?

This is book 2 in the Shelter Gang series. I loved book one The Fenian, wrote a review, the review quote: “Pure dead brilliant, a delightful read,” which was included in Stopping To Rain’s front pages!

So… what do I think of book two?

What a title, what a book! Stopping To Rain is about the pauses in life, the what ifs, what could have beens, and perhaps what will be’s for the 1970’s kids of the Scottish new town of Cumbride.

Whilst reading I was drawn to the depth of the characters, so real, with individual personas. The wonderful detail in the descriptive scenes which really locate you immersively in the story. The humour and Scottish banter which had me chortling along at times. The playlist popular music titles of the time mentioned at the beginning of each chapter.

Given that I grew up in Scotland, I related to this so much. Every minute of this wonderful book took me back in time. The characters are so vividly drawn and the plot line flows with humourous laugh out loud moments. What’s not to love?

From despicable Ricky the sex mad new kid to Greg on his money making trails, (which are largely successful but when they are not… oh dear… he does get himself in trouble,) and Patti wee patti I loved her! I think we all remember a wee Patti from school. Who may be small, unattractive but can surprise us with her hidden depths. Then there’s a pecking order of fanciablility from Gloria that everyone fancies. And Trish.

Of the characters, it was Trish who my heart went out to the most. And Fred too, who feels the weight of his past making him commit to a lifelong penance for his one wrongdoing.

Not all the shelter gang are alike, some are only out for themselves, like money making Greg.  But, with Ricky, the sex mad teen there is a glimmer of transformation as he grows older and finds his unexpected soul mate! And Sandra, Trish’s friend… what a godsend that lass is! No one is going to mess with her!

Fast forward twenty five years…

There is a sense of retribution, hope, change and forgiveness after the disturbing abuse revelations in Stopping To Rain. 

A real belter of a story. Heartfelt. Highly recommended. Just like The Fenian which I loved too.

5 🌟 stars highly recommended.

About the author

As Mike Kernan learned from his years in newspapers, the best tales are always the human interest ones. He believes there are no more fascinating subjects than folk and, as a result, his stories are rich in character and bursting with the courageous, bizarre, dramatic, heroic, tragic, poignant and downright daft stuff that people get up to and talk about.

That shines through in his latest novel, Stopping To Rain, as well as in his previous books, The Fenian, and non-fiction Fishing In The Sun.

Mike might be a late starter as an author but he has been writing for a living since he was 17, as an award-winning journalist on a range of publications from local papers to national dailies.

Since taking early retirement in 2017, he has been making up for lost time by completing the books that have been in his head and in various scattered notes for years.

Stopping To Rain is the sequel to The Fenian and is a coming of age story packed with drama, romance, tears and laughter. The action switches between Scotland of the 1970s and the turn of the millennium. It tells how the past never really leaves us as the dark secrets of youth come back to bite a group of pals later in life.

Non-fiction book Fishing In The Sun is a collection of quirky, thought-provoking, funny and always entertaining stories on Mike’s other great passion, angling, which he writes about in a national newspaper column.

Mike, who lectured in journalism after taking early retirement from newspapers, has three grown-up children and lives on the west coast of Scotland with wife Margaret. Oh, and he’s also enjoying the role he reckons he was born for – as “Big Man” to grandson and best pal Jimmy.

For more about his books visit his website at http://www.mikekernan.co.uk.